Cycle lanes are used as parking lots and to drive other vehicles

#CycleToWorkFridays
movement has gained a lot of positive response but cyclists complain it is
risky to ride cycles as there are no dedicated lanes. Also, people do not know
about cycle lanes as two-wheelers and four-wheelers use them.

“I have been
using a cycle for the past few years. It would be better if there are separate
cycle lanes as riding on the road with speedy vehicles is quite risky. If there are separate lanes, then we can ride
without any fear,” Ashwath A, who works with an IT firm, informed The Observer.

Rohith K, an
employee at a finance company in Marathahalli, said: “There are cycle lanes in
a few places in the city but as not many use them, the lane is being used by
other vehicles. These cycle lanes should be separated from the road with
barricades or dividers so that other vehicles do not use them.”

Harish C,
who uses app-based cycles to reach his office, shared: “Many people use cycles
these days. Even if we don’t own a cycle, we can always use Yulu and Bounce
cycles to cover short distances. It is very risky for the cyclists to ride
cycles along with other vehicles. Cycle lanes are a must when it comes to
safety of the cyclist. Also, there should be strict violation rules for people
who drive their two wheelers and four-wheelers in the cycle lanes,” said.

Satya Sankaran,
Bengaluru’s cycle mayor, said: “There are a lot of people coming up to ride
cycles these days. With #CycleToWork Fridays, we want more people to join to
put pressure on the BBMP to construct
cycle lanes. We have already requested them to construct cycle lanes to which
they have agreed and informed us about the plan. But they still haven’t
implemented it. We will make them implement it by making more people join the
#CycleToWork event that will happen every Friday.”

When The
Observer questioned a BBMP official (who
didn’t want to be named) regarding the construction of cycle lanes, he said:
“Building cycle lanes is a failed project. We will not continue work on it.”

“There are
lot of cyclists in the city and for a cyclist to be safe, a dedicated
infrastructure is required. We have cycle lane only in Jayanagar, which was
built long ago and now is used as parking space for two-wheelers and
four-wheelers. Cyclists face a lot of difficulty and risk while cycling along
with the traffic. Cyclists who cycle in the Whitefield road are at high risk
because the roads are horrible. They are filled with potholes, open drainages.
The beginners will find it really difficult and scary to use such roads while
cycling,” said Shilpi Shahu, cycle ambassador of Qualcomm.

“Recently,
they marked bus lane in ORR but they have not marked lane for cyclists. We now
have to cycle along with the buses which is even riskier,” she rued.

There are a
few cycle lanes in the city in Jayanagar, Cubbon Road and near Vidhana Soudha
but these lanes are used by other motor vehicles as they do not have any
distinction from the regular road.

According to
a December 2018 report in The News Minute, the BBMP drew up a detailed plan to
construct cycle lanes on the roads stretching over 100 km of roads in the city
in about 11 months’ time. The selected roads for the cycle lanes to be built
were parts of Outer Ring Road and Whitefield during the first phase of the
project and in Marathahalli to Hoodi via Brookfield, Ulsoor Lake to Swami
Vivekananda Metro station, 100 Feet Road
and Double Road in Indiranagar. They also earmarked areas like Rajajinagar,
Banashankari, Jayanagar, Magadi Road, Tumakuru Road and Mysuru Road to expand
the project.

According to
The Hindu dated February 2, 2019, BBMP was to work on a cycle lane in HSR
Layout at a cost of Rs 18.5 crore. The work was expected to be completed by the
end of March 2019 — but it hasn’t been finished. The BBMP has floated tenders
for development of cycle lanes and development of footpaths on link roads
around the Byappanahalli, Swami Vivekananda, Indiranagar, Trinity Junction Metro
stations, besides dedicated cycle tracks in industrial hubs.

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